When a boy cries, his father trains him in the way of the ancients. He is taught to "man up," and rejects anything feminine in his life. Thus he begins the process of becoming a man in the image of his culture. This transformation comes at the expense of his own calling to reflect the image of God. Men and women, however, were both created in this divine image and were meant to live in harmony rather than enmity. Recently, influential Christian writers and leaders have suggested that men have become too feminized and need to return to their calling to be "real men." Clark believes that this "new masculinity" is in reality a return to the way of the ancients. Drawing from his experiences as a minister, domestic- and sexual- violence prevention advocate, and community leader, Clark suggests that Jesus came to redefine masculinity and resist the cultural view of manhood, power, and oppression.

Ron Clark is the lead church planter for the Agape Church of Christ in Portland, Oregon where he is active in community organizations in domestic and sexual abuse, homelessness, and human trafficking. He is an adjunct faculty member at George Fox Evangelical Seminary and author of Setting the Captives Free, Freeing the Oppressed and The Better Way.